Excelsia College

School of Creative and Performing Arts

Dr Mark Seton | Excelsia College | Dramatic art

Drama and Screen Production Lecturer

Dr Mark Seton

BA (Theatre and Philosophy) GradDipArts (Theatre), PhD (Performance Studies) 
Contact Details

Telephone Number

02 9819 8821

Email

mark.seton@excelsia.edu.au

Biographical details

Dr Mark Seton is a Lecturer in the School of Creative and Performing Arts at Excelsia College. His research and scholarship in the field of actor health and wellbeing, both in training and in the workplace, have been recognized internationally: by a Churchill Fellowship to the UK, and by his ongoing contribution to the annual training Certificate program for Performing Arts Medicine, conducted by the Performing Arts Medicine Association each year in the USA. He has contributed chapters to several books and has authored peer refereed publications and reports in key areas of actor wellbeing in training and in the workplace. Mark is an invited examiner of Honours, Masters and Doctoral theses in this field and is on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Applied Arts and Health.

Profile of Dr Mark Seton

Education

2000–2004 Doctor of Philosophy in Arts (Performance Studies) The University of Sydney

1999 Graduate Diploma in Arts by Research (Theatre) University of New South Wales

1993–1995 Bachelor of Arts (Majors in Theatre and Philosophy) University of New South Wales.

1977 Diploma of Film and TV Production School of Visual Arts

Awards and Honours

2007 – Present Honorary Research Associate, Department of Theatre and Performance Studies, The University of Sydney

2009 Gilbert Spottiswood Churchill Fellowship Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Australia

Research Interests

Creativity, complexity and resilience in both arts professions and other professions (law, medicine) where vulnerability is unavoidable in dealing with trauma and violation.

Current projects

Co-investigator, Actors Wellbeing Study, The University of Sydney and Equity Foundation

Development of online training resources, Actors Wellbeing Academy

Curriculum development to incorporate health and wellbeing into performing arts courses

Associations

Association of Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE)


Australian Society for Performing Arts Healthcare (ASPAH)


Australasian Association for Theatre, Drama and Performance Studies (ADSA)


Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA)


Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA)


Theatre and Performance Research Association (TaPRA)


Editorial Board, Journal of Applied Arts and Health

Selected publications

Book Chapters

Seton, M. (2017). “Nurturing Innovation in Performance Training: Embodying Values of
Interconnection, Collectivity, and Interaction in Higher Education”, Creativity and Spirituality:
A Multidisciplinary Perspective, Information Age Publishing, Maureen Miner and Martin
Dowson (ed), Charlotte 

Seton, M. and Trouton, L. (2014). “Deconstructing the taken-for-grantedness of institutional knowledge and power in arts education through ethical conversation: restoring the voice of the creative student”, Echoes: Ethics and Issues of Voice in Educational Research, Sense Publishers, Warren Midgley, Andy Davies, Mark Oliver and Patrick Alan Danaher (ed), Rotterdam 

eton, M. (2013). “Apocalyptic and Prophetic: Revelation and Mystery in the Revival of Doctor Who”, Small Screen Revelations: Apocalypse in Contemporary Television, Sheffield Phoenix Press, James Aston and John Walliss (ed), Sheffield


Journal Papers

Seton, M., Maxwell, I. & Szabó, M. (2019). “Warming up/cooling down: Managing the transition on and off stage”. Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, 10:1, pp. 127-141.

Seton, M. with Prior, R., Maxwell, I., Szabó, M. (2015). “Responsible Care in Actor Training: Effective support for occupational health training in Drama Schools”, Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, 6:1, pp. 59-71.

Seton, M. (2014). “Traumas of acting physical and psychological violence: How fact and fiction shape bodies for better or worse” Performing Ethos, 4:1, pp. 25-40.


Conference Papers

Seton, M. (2019). “Integrating wellbeing skills and practices into tertiary professional curriculum: Challenges and opportunities”, National Wellness for Law Forum, The University of Melbourne and Monash University, Melbourne

Seton, M. (2018). Disempowering Shame, Enabling Resilience: Healthy Actor Training Case Study, 36th Annual Symposium of the Performing Arts Medicine Association, Chapman University, Colorado, USA

Seton, M. (2018). Health issues and challenges faced by actors across the lifespan, Essentials of Performing Arts Medicine Course, Chapman University, Colorado, USA.

Seton, M. (2017). “Nurturing Mental Health Resilience in students in HE arts programs”, Inaugural Australasian Mental Health and Higher Education Conference, James Cook University, Toowoomba